Sheriff’s facility on budget

The construction phase of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Complex expansion and remodel project is about to get under way and reported on budget.

Jefferson County Board of Commissioners approved a $26,209,592 construction contract with Haselden Construction during the Tuesday meeting.

Phase One of the project, the preconstruction design and cost estimations, has been under way since January 2012, and contracted to Haselden Construction.

Half a year earlier, county staff had warned the sheriff’s complex was estimated to come in as much as $8.6 million over budget. Value engineering and construction design savings were credited with bringing the project back in line.

Most recently, Haselden’s Phase Two bid was actually $915,000 less than initially estimated after plan revisions.

Facilities and Construction Management representative Anne Panza told the commissioners that “long term efficiency, and building quality was preserved” during the engineering cost savings changes at a staff briefing a week ago.

At that briefing, Special Projects Chief Jeff Shrader with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said the plans for the new facility would greatly aid the agency, noting expanded evidence vault area with a doubling of useable space as one example.

“We think it’s going to provide us with space for the next 20 to 40 years,”

Shrader said.

He added that gun and DNA lab space are still included in the revised complex design.

One feature of the sheriff’s complex not included in the new design is an impound yard.

Shrader said the department has privatized most of that operation, and already shifted about 80 percent of impounded vehicles offsite. Shrader said the freed-up space would be used to help stage for the coming construction.

Construction could begin as early as March, and is expected to take 15 months.